Monday, December 18, 2006

After a thorough exam, X-rays of her leg and pelvis (in which she had to hold her leg in a horribly painful position) and a difficult, but necessary, blood draw (to rule out a septic infection and leukemia), we discovered that Evan does indeed have Transient Synovitis (inflammation and subsequent pain in the hip joint).

In Evan's case (as is common for many kids who get this thing) the pain is referred to the thigh.

Now, this condition usually occurs during or after a recent viral infection-- an infection that "triggers a process that leads to an immune response that affects the joints."

Triggers an immune response? Inflammation?

No.

I'm not going down that road.

I'll just say that this thing is supposed to go away on its own-- usually within a week to ten days, sometimes longer.

That Evan needs to avoid putting weight on that leg-- no problem, since she's afraid to move it, let alone stand.

That we have to give her regular doses of ibuprofen, and carry her until she is without pain.

My friend Saara had a scary experience with one of her sons earlier this year. Viral infection that made his face swell twice its size, with possible immune issues. This is the friend with three type 1 sisters, so there were a lot of breaths held.

Auto-immune stuff scares me too. My peanut alone has three, although two are relatively minor (type 1 diabetes, alopecia, and vitiligo). The alopecia is hard though because she is pretty thin on top with her hair now and she has a few bald spots up on top. I cross my fingers though and hope it doesn’t get any worse!

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About Me

I'm a mom of two children-- a 9-year old girl and a 16-year old young man. In addition, I've been vice president of a marketing company; a full-time student (English major); a product services manager for a financial publisher; a childbirth instructor and birth assistant; an aspiring sculptor; and most recently, director of information services and outreach for a non-profit government watchdog group-- in exactly that order.